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A.M. Costa Rica's Second news page |
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José, Costa Rica, Wednesday, July 16, 2014, Vol. 14, No. 139
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By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Posted at 2:50 p.m. Prosecutors have released the four men suspected of sexually assaulting a 19-year-old female student from the United States, according to a spokesperson at the Judicial Investigating Organization. The men were set free because the woman did not want to pursue with charges, said the spokesperson.. The men, Nicaraguans who were working on a construction site in La Fortuna when they were detained Tuesday, were reported to be the last ones seen with the woman before the reported gang rape took place early Sunday morning. Monday reports surfaced that the female student visiting Costa Rica with classmates had said she was sexually assaulted while returning alone to her lodgings from a bar in La Fortuna. The judicial agency spokesperson said Wednesday afternoon that the female was with her group visiting Jacó, as the students have another week left before they return to the U.S. Culture ministry target of search By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The anti-corruption prosecutor and judicial agents searched the Ministerio de Cultura y Juventud Tuesday as part of an investigation of excessive payments in past years. The press office of the Ministerio Pública confirmed the search by the Fiscalía Adjunta de Probidad, Transparencia y Anticorrupción. The agency, which is home to prosecutors, said that the team confiscated paperwork including contracts and a computer. The allegation was lodged by the ministry itself under the new administration of Elizabeth Fonseca. After local news reports surfaced that a majority of the ministry's exposition contracts were given to one purveyor, Ms. Fonseca called for an investigation. The culture ministry reported questionable expenses that were charged for five major cultural events. Those in question are the Festival de las Artes, Enamorate de tu Ciudad, Colegio de Costa Rica, Festival Internacional, and the Feria Internacional del Libro. Ms. Fonseca said her ministry's investigation found that since 2011 spending on these programs had rocketed when compared to past years. The minister of Cultura y Juventud under the Laura Chinchilla administration was Manuel Obregón. Fitness seems to trump sedentary effects By the American Cancer Society news staff
Physical fitness may buffer some of the adverse health effects of too much sitting, according to a new study by researchers from the American Cancer Society, The Cooper Institute, and the University of Texas. The study appears in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings, and finds the association between prolonged sedentary time and obesity and blood markers associated with cardiovascular disease is markedly less pronounced when taking fitness into account. Sedentary behavior has been linked to an increase risk of obesity, metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, some cancers, and premature death. But previous studies of the association have not taken into account the protective impact of fitness, a strong predictor of cardiovascular disease incidence and mortality. For the current study, researchers led by Kerem Shuval of the American Cancer Society, examined the association of sedentary behavior, physical activity, and fitness to obesity and metabolic biomarkers among 1304 men seen at the Cooper Clinic in Dallas, Texas between 1981 and 2012. Sedentary time was composed of self-reported television viewing time and time spent in a car self-reported on a 1982 survey. Fitness was determined by a treadmill test during the medical examination at clinic visits. The study showed that more sedentary time was significantly associated with higher levels of systolic blood pressure, and total cholesterol and triglycerides, as well as lower levels of HDL, the “good” cholesterol. It was also associated with body mass index, waist circumference, and body fat percentage. But when researchers controlled for fitness, they found prolonged sedentary time was only significantly associated with a higher triglyceride/HDL cholesterol ratio (an indicator of insulin resistance). Sedentary time was not associated with metabolic syndrome (a clustering of risk factors). In comparison, higher fitness levels were associated with reduced body fat and metabolic measures. The authors say interpretation of their study’s findings should be tempered by its limitations. For example, sedentary behavior was based on self-report at one point in time, whereas fitness was assessed objectively during clinic visits. Study shows why hurricanes intensify By the University of Miami news staff
New research from University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science suggests that physical conditions where the ocean and atmosphere meet, is a key component to improve forecast models. The study offers a new method to aid in storm intensity prediction of hurricanes. “The general assumption has been that the large density difference between the ocean and atmosphere makes that interface too stable to effect storm intensity,” said Brian Haus, professor of ocean sciences and co-author of the study. “In this study we show that a type of instability may help explain rapid intensification of some tropical storms.” Experiments simulated the wind speed and ocean surface conditions of a tropical storm. The researchers used a technique called “shadow imaging,” where a guided laser is sent through the two fluids – air and water – to measure the physical properties of the ocean’s surface during extreme winds, equivalent to a category-3 hurricane. Using the data obtained from the laboratory experiments, the researchers then developed numerical simulations to show that changes in the physical stress at the ocean surface at hurricane force wind speeds may explain the rapid intensification of some tropical storms. Haus and colleagues will conduct further studies on hurricane intensity prediction in a new laboratory that is the only facility capable of creating category-5 level hurricanes in a controlled, seawater laboratory. The nearly 65-foot long tank allows scientists to simulate major hurricanes using a 3-D wave field to expand research on the physics of hurricanes and the associated impacts of severe wind-driven and wave-induced storm surges on coastal structures. Our reader's opinion
He opposed dengue mosquito spraying Dear A.M. Costa Rica: At this moment I'm waiting for the police to arrive, who were called by the sprayer for the Ministerio de Salud, who showed up unannounced and without saying anything, began spraying the salad greens growing in my front yard. Luckily I caught him before he got to the organic seedlings I am about to plant on the farm, nor did I permit him to spray inside the house. The policy that mass spraying of toxic compounds is going to eliminate the problem of dengue is patently absurd. It is a mere bandaid, and not a very effective one. Is dengue epidemic here? There's not much doubt about that. The mosquitoes that carry it love meat-eaters, of which Ticos have been eating at a rate unprecedented in their history. Eliminating eating meat is nearly unthinkable to the vast majority of people. But here they are now cutting off their noses to spite their faces. The Caja is backed up and bursting at the seams. Data from the World Resources Institute show that Costa Rica uses toxic pesticides and herbicides at a rate more than twice as high as any other country in the world. The toxic spraying for dengue has been increasing, which not only kills ALL the insects, and is being blamed for decimating the bee population so essential to agriculture of all types-it creates more health problems than it will cure. Increased respiratory problems, lowered immune systems, harm to young and old, are just a few of the needless problems they are adding on. It's been proven that lowering blood acidity levels is the way to avoid attracting the mosquitoes, who carry dengue, from biting. How does one lower their blood acidity, which incidentally is cited as being a major benefit to overall health, as well as a key component in curtailing cancer, arthritis, Alzheimer's, and many other illnesses, as well as aging in general? Eating meat, especially red meat, processed foods, and sugar are the major causes of elevated blood acidity. Anyone here interested in supporting the cause of lowering toxic spraying in the name of "public health" should contact the Ministerio de Salud: www.ministeriodesalud.go.cr/ Hari Singh Khalsa
Cóbano Editor's Note; Later the writer said "Well I guess calling their bluff worked. The cops didn't show, and they left."
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A.M. Costa Rica Third News Page |
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| San José, Costa Rica, Wednesday, July 16, 2014, Vol. 14, No. 139 | |
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| Search for girl, 6, still fruitless, but case advances
against relative |
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By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Police and emergency personnel are beefing up their numbers as the search for a 6-year-old girl continues in Santo Domingo de Heredia. The girl is Yerelyn Guzmán Calvo. There were significant changes Tuesday outside the search. A relative of the girl who has the last name of Guzmán now faces an allegation of engineering her abduction. At the same time, prosecutors have changed the focus of sex abuse charges and now say the man abused the brothers of the missing girl not the girl herself, according to a statement from prosecutors. In addition the entire family has been placed under the jurisdiction of the Patronato Nacional de la Infancia, the child protection agency. |
The agency known
as PANI is supposed to determine if there is a risk in keeping the
remaining children in the home. The suspect is a relative of the girl's father. He was questioned Saturday and then released. That afternoon he was detained again. The case against him appears to hinge completely on the word of the girl's two minor brothers. Such youngsters are notoriously bad witnesses and can be lead easily by police. Prosecutors are seeking preventative detention for the 24-year-old suspect. A judge has yet to make that decision. Tuesday the search itself moved to a nearby river that had not been looked at previously. Police and rescue workers have combed the area for a kilometer around the family's home without success. |
| Pedestrians continue to be the target on the highways and
streets |
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By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Pedestrians on the nation's highways continue to be a major problem. So far this year 21 have died in mishaps with vehicles. The PolicÌa de Tránsito generally blames a pedestrian when the individual is hit by a car. The person was crossing at the wrong spot dressed in dark clothing and doing so in the driving rain, they say. Pedestrians have no special rights on the Costa Rican roads. Motorists do not yield to them when making right or left turns. In rural areas, many roadways have little or no shoulder, so walkers have to do so in the traffic lane. Traffic police expressed pleasure Tuesday that the pedestrian road death toll this year was four less than in the same period in the previous year. They have issued yellow bracelets for pedestrians which are supposed to make them more visible. Mario Calderón, director of the traffic police, said that with the arrival of the rainy season and children back in school after midyear vacation, there is a greater risk of vehicle-pedestrian mishaps. To some extent pedestrians do bring mishaps on themselves in many situations. Some refuse to use the pedestrian bridges and cross four- and six-lane highways on foot dodging cars. Even street vendors wear dark clothing that makes them nearly invisible after dusk. Others cross in the middle of the block ignoring crosswalks and traffic signals. Motorists also are at fault when they jump the red light, speed or deliberately try to hit pedestrians, which seems to be a hobby among some of the young. |
 Ministerio de Obras P™blicas y Transportes
photo
This
is the type of yellow bracelet traffic police are giving away.
Calderén noted that many youngsters carry cell telephones and they have the opportunity to turn on the flashlight of the cell telephone when they are walking in a dark area. |
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| You need to see Costa Rican tourism information HERE! |
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| A.M. Costa Rica's Fourth News page | |||||
| San José, Costa Rica, Wednesday, July 16, 2014, Vol. 14, No. 139 | |||||
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| Cheap, easy way developed to test for quality of
anti-malaria drug |
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By
the Oregon State University news staff
Chemists and students in science and engineering at Oregon State University have created a new type of chemical test, or assay, that’s inexpensive, simple, and can tell whether or not one of the primary drugs being used to treat malaria is genuine, an enormous and deadly problem in the developing world. The World Health Organization has estimated that about 200,000 lives a year may be lost due to the use of counterfeit anti-malarial drugs. When commercialized, the new technology may be able to help address that problem by testing drugs for efficacy at a cost of a few cents. When broadly implemented, this might save thousands of lives every year around the world, and similar technology could also be developed for other types of medications and diseases, experts say. Findings on the new technology were just published in Talanta, a professional journal. “There are laboratory methods to analyze medications such as this, but they often are not available or widely used in the developing world where malaria kills thousands of people every year,” said Vincent Remcho, a professor of chemistry. “What we need are inexpensive, accurate assays that can detect adulterated pharmaceuticals in the field, simple enough that anyone can use them,” Remcho said. “Our technology should provide that.” The system looks about as simple, and is almost as cheap, as a sheet of paper. But it’s actually a highly sophisticated colorimetric assay that consumers could use to tell whether or not they are getting the medication they paid for, artesunate, which is by far the most important drug used to treat serious cases of malaria. The assay also verifies that an adequate level of the drug is present. In some places in the developing world, more than 80 percent of outlets are selling counterfeit pharmaceuticals, researchers have found. One survey found that 38 to 53 percent of outlets in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam had no active drug in the product that was being sold. Artesunate, which can cost $1 to $2 per adult treatment, is considered an expensive drug by the standards of |
the developing
world, making counterfeit drugs profitable since the disease is so
prevalent. Besides allowing thousands of needless deaths, the spread of counterfeit drugs with sub-therapeutic levels of artesunate can promote the development of new strains of multi-drug resistant malaria, with global impacts. Government officials could also use the new system as a rapid screening tool to help combat the larger problem of drug counterfeiting. The new technology is an application of microfluidics, in this instance paper microfluidics, in which a film is impressed onto paper that can then detect the presence and level of the artesunate drug. A single pill can be crushed, dissolved in water, and when a drop of the solution is placed on the paper, it turns yellow if the drug is present. The intensity of the color indicates the level of the drug, which can be compared to a simple color chart. Undergraduate and graduate students in chemistry and computer science working on this project in the Remcho lab took the system a step further, and created an app for an iPhone that could be used to measure the color, and tell with an even higher degree of accuracy both the presence and level of the drug. The technology is similar to what can be accomplished with computers and expensive laboratory equipment, but is much simpler and less expensive. As a result, use of this approach may significantly expand in medicine, scientists said. “This is conceptually similar to what we do with integrated circuit chips in computers, but we’re pushing fluids around instead of electrons, to reveal chemical information that’s useful to us,” Remcho said. “Chemical communication is how Mother Nature does it, and the long term applications of this approach really are mind-blowing.” Colorimetric assays have already been developed for measurement of many biomarker targets of interest, Remcho said, and could be expanded for a wide range of other medical conditions, pharmaceutical and diagnostic tests, pathogen detection, environmental analysis and other uses. With a proof of concept of the new technology complete, the researchers may work with the university to commercialize the technology, ultimately with global application. |
Here's reasonable medical care
Costa Rica's world class medical specialists are at your command. Get the top care for much less than U.S. prices. It is really a great way to spend a vacation. See our list of recommended professionals HERE!amcr-prom
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| A.M. Costa Rica's Fifth news page |
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| San José, Costa Rica, Wednesday, July 16, 2014, Vol. 14, No. 139 | |||||||
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| Support grows in Congress to do something about kids By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Bipartisan support appears to be growing on Capitol Hill to promptly address a growing immigration crisis along the southern U.S. border. Senate lawmakers agree a surge of undocumented underage arrivals must end, but the precise remedy and funding required to achieve it remain a point of contention. Bipartisanship and swift action are rarities in Congress, which is considering a request from President Barack Obama for nearly $4 billion to care for and process tens of thousands of undocumented minors, and to boost federal resources along the 3,200-kilometer U.S.-Mexico border. Republicans control the House of Representatives and can block or delay votes in the Senate; but, the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, Chuck Grassley, had this to say when asked if Congress should act before a month-long August recess. “I hope so, because I think the humanitarian needs are great,” he said. That view is echoed by Sen. Tom Carper, a Democrat who says, “It is something we should do before the August recess.” Both senators say a 2008 law signed by then-president George W. Bush assuring immigration hearings for most underage arrivals is untenable, given the sheer number of minors arriving from primarily Central American nations. Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Republican, agrees. He says, “The 2008 law was designed to deal with children from China and other places that come here as sex slaves, to make sure we do not send them right back. Clearly, the immigrants coming from Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador are of the belief that if you can get here, you can stay.” One proposal put forth by a Republican senator and a Democratic House member would drastically limit the time frame for an undocumented minor to make a case to remain in the United States as a refugee. Sen. Robert Menendez, a Democrat, fears such a change would cause untold numbers of new arrivals with legitimate immigration claims to be denied justice. “You cannot, in 72 hours, make a case that your father got murdered in front of you," he said. "You cannot make a case that a gang told you, ‘Join us or die’ if you do not have the time to produce documents, affidavits, certificates, or whatnot.” Other points of disagreement concern precisely how much money should be spent for what purpose. Graham said funds are needed to address humanitarian needs at the border, but added that he will not vote to approve billions of dollars until policy concerns are addressed. Carper fears no U.S. solution will work so long as violence and poverty remain endemic in Central America. Carper said, “Why are parents willing to send 8-, 9-, 10-year-old unaccompanied children 1,500 miles into a foreign country? The reason why is the lives of those families in Honduras, many of them, are hell holes. And so they are voting with their feet.” For now, Obama and members of his cabinet are stressing that undocumented minors have no automatic right to remain in the United States, and hoping the message is heard in Central America. Administration critics say Obama is at least partly to blame for the border crisis, given his recently stated intention to do what he can to address America’s immigration challenges though executive action. Pope calls for a welcome for Central American children By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Pope Francis is calling for urgent action to protect the tens of thousands of children who make their way alone from Central America to the United States. In a letter read at a Vatican-organized conference in Mexico City, Francis said these children need to be welcomed. He added that after leaving their families and escaping violence and poverty, they are met with racism and xenophobia when reaching the U.S. border. The pope appealed to the world community to promote development in Latin America while also spreading the word among the would-be child immigrants that traveling alone is dangerous. U.S. lawmakers from both parties are calling on Congress to vote on a bill to boost funding for processing illegal immigrants before next month's recess. Four Tico kids with parents By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The Costa Rican foreign ministry said Tuesday that there were reports that four Tico children had arrived in the United States unescorted this year. None was in custody, said the Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y Culto. All four of the children are in the care of their parents, the ministry said. No parent has sought help from the ministry's consulates, officials said. Reporter licensing plan launched in South Africa By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
A plan to license reporters in South Africa is being condemned by journalist groups. The new chief of South Africa’s public broadcaster, Hlaudi Motsoeneng, had already raised the ire of many South Africans for claiming to have a high school diploma, called a matric, which he does not. Now he's further raised hackles by demanding that journalists in Africa’s most established and boisterous media landscape be licensed to practice. Motsoeneng says media licensing is necessary because some journalists are lazy, make up facts, and are not objective. He did not give specific examples. He also says South African journalists too often miss what he described as good news about the government’s efforts to improve the lives of South Africans. He says he will make a formal submission on this idea to the nation’s communications minister. Unsurprisingly, the pronouncement has been met with derision by journalists, professionals who are paid to ask and say what most people are too afraid, or embarrassed, to ask and say. South Africa’s National Editors’ Forum has condemned the proposal and criticized Motsoeneng for what it calls his ignorance of journalistic practice. Tuesday, the International Committee to Protect Journalists joined the fray, saying South African journalists have earned the right to report freely after decades of oppression and censorship under apartheid. “We are very concerned that the head of the public broadcaster is thinking in terms of licensing journalists," said the committee's Africa program coordinator, Sue Valentine. "Because we believe that this is not the job of the head of a public broadcaster, and also it totally takes South African press freedom, which is hard won, it takes it backwards.” Ms. Valentine also says that Motsoeneng’s argument that doctors and lawyers are licensed should not apply to journalists. In fact, she says, his proposal flies in the face of South Africa’s constitution. “The difference is that a doctor or a lawyer is a profession, whereas journalists deal with the issue of the fundamental human rights, of freedom of expression and the right of access to information," she said. "So the right of freedom of expression and access to information is at the heart of what journalists do, and for that reason journalists should not be licensed.” Motsoeneng says he will stand firm by his proposal, whose fate, without a doubt, will be closely followed by journalists. Scientists say they are close to finding life beyond Earth By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
NASA scientists say they’re closer than ever to finding life beyond Earth. At a July 14 panel discussion, several leading NASA scientists outlined the agency’s roadmap to find life and looked back on the discoveries that paved the way. While NASA continues to look for life in the solar system, namely on Mars and the icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn, the panel was focused on the search for life outside the solar system. NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, a former astronaut, opened the discussion saying “it is improbable that in the limitless vastness of the universe we humans stand alone." One major advancement in the discovery of worlds outside the solar system has been the Kepler Space Telescope, launched in 2009. It has been critical in expanding the knowledge of exoplanets, discovering most of the 5,000 potential exoplanets, 1,700 of which have been confirmed. One of those planets is an Earth-size planet orbiting the habitable zone of a star. The habitable zone is the distance from a star where liquid water can exist. Liquid water is considered to be a key ingredient for life. Kepler’s discoveries have led scientists to conclude that there are potentially billions of planets in the galaxy. "Sometime in the near future, people will be able to point to a star and say, 'that star has a planet like Earth'," says Sara Seager, professor of planetary science and physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts in a statement. "Astronomers think it is very likely that every single star in our Milky Way galaxy has at least one planet." A major step in discovering potential extraterrestrial life will be the launch of the Transiting Exoplanet Surveying Satellite in 2017, James Webb Space Telescope in 2018 and the Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope - Astrophysics Focused Telescope Assets early in the next decade. These will eventually allow scientists to determine if an exoplanet has atmospheric water vapor or carbon dioxide and better measure other atmospheric chemicals. "With the James Webb, we have the first capability of finding life on other planets, but we have to get lucky. We have to beat the odds," said Seager. The panel opened up to questions from the public, and a viewer asked if extraterrestrial life were discovered, would the government let the public know. “Of course we would,” replied Ellen Stofan, NASA's chief scientist. North Korean freighter stuck on reef in Gulf of México By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
A North Korean freighter remains lodged on a reef near the port of Tuxpan on Mexico's Gulf coast, a day after it ran aground en route from Havana. The port's captain was headed to inspect the Mu Du Bong and determine a course of action to get the 6,700-ton vessel afloat again, a source in his office said. The Mu Du Bong was headed to the small port in the state of Veracruz to pick up a load of fertilizer when it hit a reef roughly 12 kilometers from the port. There were no immediate reports of injuries, according to local emergency chief Ricardo Maza. Maza said the captain was disoriented when the accident happened. Environmental officials are determining if the reef has been damaged. Citing online maritime traffic information, a correspondent for Forbes wrote Sunday that the Mu Du Bong deviated from its traditional routes in East Asia to call on a port in eastern Russia in April, then headed to Cuba via the Panama Canal in late June before falling off the radar for 10 days. The incident marks the second time in a year a North Korean vessel has encountered problems in the region. Last July, the crew of the Chong Chon Gang was held in the Panama Canal after authorities found undeclared military supplies, including two Soviet-era MiG-21 aircraft, air defense systems, missiles and command and control vehicles hidden under millions of dollars’ worth of sugar. Both Havana and Pyongyang said the weapons were obsolete Cuban arms being shipped to North Korea for refurbishment under a legitimate contract and due to be returned to Cuba. But neither country explained why the shipment was hidden. Panama said in April that a U.N. team concluded that the cargo violated a U.N. embargo. The last three of the crew members to be detained, including the captain, were acquitted in late June and left Panama Saturday en route to Pyongyang, their defense attorney said. Pakistan man is sentenced to death for blasphemy By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
A court in Pakistan has sentenced a man to death on blasphemy charges. Lawyers say a judge in the eastern city of Lahore rejected Mohammad Zulfiqar's defense of mental illness and convicted him for violating the country's blasphemy laws of insulting the Prophet Muhammad. Zulfiqar was arrested for reportedly writing derogatory language against the Prophet on the walls of a public park in the Islampura area of Lahore in April of 2008. Blasphemy carries the death penalty in Pakistan and is a highly sensitive issue in the Muslim-majority country. In May, a human rights activist and lawyer was shot and killed while defending a university lecturer accused of blasphemy. Rashid Rehman's death was the latest high-profile killing linked to Pakistan's strict laws against defaming Islam. A prominent provincial governor and a Christian federal minister were assassinated in separate incidents in 2011 for criticizing the laws. Last month a Christian couple was sentenced to death for sending a blasphemous text message to the imam of a mosque in the eastern town of Gojra, where riots targeting Christians erupted in 2009. The couple's lawyer Nadeem Hassan called trial procedures unfair, telling the BBC the offending message was texted from a mobile phone which has been lost previously. Some critics of the country's blasphemy laws say the policy is sometimes exploited to unfairly target minority groups. Russia pulls U.S. plug on its D.C. radio network By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Facing legal problems, the Russian government-funded radio network, the Voice of Russia, has fired its Washington bureau staff and closed the office. The shutdown happened Monday, amid allegations of tax fraud and claims of racial discrimination at the network. Alexei Iazlovsky, the head of the network's U.S. operations, pleaded guilty last year to tax fraud and will be sentenced later this year. The network's employment practices also have attracted attention from the IRS and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The IRS is investigating whether the network used contractors alongside full-time, salaried employees to skirt payroll taxes. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission took an interest in the network after several former staffers claimed they were fired because of their race. The employees have filed a lawsuit against International TV Services, the network’s contract manager in the United States. Some suspect Voice of Russia will quickly return to the U.S. through a different management company without the legal troubles. Clean living put forward as an Alzheimer defense By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Scientists say lifestyle changes, such as healthier eating and more education, could prevent people from developing Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia. Several studies presented this week at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference in Copenhagen support this view. One trial in Finland found two years of exercising, diet, cognitive training and other changes improved people's memory function. Research also shows a decline in the rate of dementia in the United States, Germany and other developed countries. A U.S. study concluded an American over age 60 today has a 44 percent lower chance of developing dementia than a person the same age 30 years ago. Researchers say reasons for this could be declines in smoking, heart disease and strokes - all factors linked to dementia - as well as improvements in blood pressure and cholesterol levels. But scientists caution that the growth of diabetes and obesity could offset these gains. And in poor countries, behind in education and health, dementia seems to be rising. In the United States, more than five million people have Alzheimer's. The non-profit Alzheimer's Disease International says dementia, of which Alzheimer's is the most common form, affects more than 44 million people worldwide. The group says that number is expected to triple to more than 135 million by 2050. The age-related brain condition, which gradually robs patients of their ability to think, remember and care for themselves, is rising partly because people are living longer. In addition to the focus on lifestyle as prevention, some are looking to medications to fight Alzheimer's. Swiss drugmaker Novartis plans to test two experimental Alzheimer's drugs in people who are genetically predisposed to the disease, but do not yet have symptoms. The company is collaborating with the Banner Alzheimer's Institute in the U.S. state of Arizona. |
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| The contents of this page and this Web site are copyrighted by A.M. Costa Rica.com Ltda. 2014 and may not be reproduced anywhere without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details | ||||||
| A.M. Costa Rica's sixth news page |
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| San José, Costa Rica, Wednesday, July 16, 2014, Vol. 14, No. 139 | |||||||||
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Giant study
confirms organic benefits
By the Washington State University news
staff
The largest study of its kind has found that organic foods and crops have a suite of advantages over their conventional counterparts, including more antioxidants and fewer, less frequent pesticide residues. The study looked at an unprecedented 343 peer-reviewed publications comparing the nutritional quality and safety of organic and conventional plant-based foods, including fruits, vegetables and grains. The study team applied sophisticated meta-analysis techniques to quantify differences between organic and non-organic foods. “Science marches on,” said Charles Benbrook, a Washington State University researcher and the lone American co-author of the paper published in the British Journal of Nutrition. “Our team learned valuable lessons from earlier reviews on this topic, and we benefited from the team’s remarkable breadth of scientific skills and experience.” Most of the publications covered in the study looked at crops grown in the same area on similar soils. This approach reduces other possible sources of variation in nutritional and safety parameters. The research team found the quality and reliability of comparison studies has greatly improved in recent years, leading to the discovery of significant nutritional and food safety differences not detected in earlier studies. For example, the new study incorporates the results of a research project that compared the nutritional and sensory quality of organic and conventional strawberries grown in California. The British Journal of Nutrition study was led by scientists at Newcastle University in the United Kingdom, with Benbrook helping design the study, write the paper and review the scientific literature, particularly on studies in North and South America. In general, the team found that organic crops have several nutritional benefits that stem from the way the crops are produced. A plant on a conventionally managed field will typically have access to high levels of synthetic nitrogen and will marshal the extra resources into producing sugars and starches. As a result, the harvested portion of the plant will often contain lower concentrations of other nutrients, including health-promoting antioxidants. Without the synthetic chemical pesticides applied on conventional crops, organic plants tend to produce more phenols and polyphenols to defend against pest attacks and related injuries. In people, phenols and polyphenols can help prevent diseases triggered or promoted by oxidative damage, like coronary heart disease, stroke and certain cancers. Overall, organic crops had 18 to 69 percent higher concentrations of antioxidant compounds. The team concludes that consumers who switch to organic fruit, vegetables and cereals would get 20 to 40 percent more antioxidants. That’s the equivalent of about two extra portions of fruit and vegetables a day, with no increase in caloric intake. The researchers also found pesticide residues were three to four times more likely in conventional foods than organic ones, as organic farmers are not allowed to apply toxic, synthetic pesticides. While crops harvested from organically managed fields sometimes contain pesticide residues, the levels are usually much lower in organic food, compared to the corresponding, conventionally grown food. “This study is telling a powerful story of how organic plant-based foods are nutritionally superior and deliver bona fide health benefits,” said Benbrook. In a surprising finding, the team concluded that conventional crops had roughly twice as much cadmium, a toxic heavy metal contaminant, as organic crops. The leading explanation is that certain fertilizers approved for use only on conventional farms somehow make cadmium more available to plant roots. A doubling of cadmium from food could push some individuals over safe daily intake levels. |
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| From Page 7: Industrial chamber to push for changes By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The chamber of industry proposes to do nothing less than change the development model of the country. The chamber, correctly called the Cámara de Industrias de Costa Rica, is presenting a series of proposals to the government during an all-day session Thursday at a local hotel. The idea is to change the government's development plan, the Plan Nacional de Desarrollo 2014-2018, in significant ways. The chamber said that the initiative has as central themes innovation, competitivity, employment, human development and the environment. The chamber wants to free the Instituto Nacional de Aprendizaje from state control and make it a pubic entity. The chamber also said it will propose tax reform and standardizing the way government agencies make purchases. Some government ministers and their staff members are expected to attend. In the past, the chamber has expressed concern about the high price of electricity among other problems. |
